Solomon: For rookie Lyles, it’s all work and no wins

Whoever said hard work is its own reward didn’t play professional baseball.

Astros pitcher Jordan Lyles, the youngest player in the major leagues by more than half a year, has been working hard. And for the most part since he was called up from the minors just over a month ago, he has pitched well.

But once again Sunday, his effort was not rewarded with a victory. He got little run support and left a solid outing against the Boston Red Sox with a no-decision.

Lyles wasn’t at his best, but if his teammates were better, he could easily have something other than a zero in the win column.

“I think everybody needs to be rewarded for doing something good, and he does too,” Astros manager Brad Mills said. “There becomes a time when you say, ‘I’m doing everything I can but still not getting a win.’ That’s our concern with not just him, but really the whole ballclub. We want to continue to do things (right), but we need to get a win.

“We need them to see — not just Jordan, all these guys — that when they do things right, they are rewarded for it with a win. That’s how winning teams play.”

For the fifth time in his seven starts, Lyles allowed fewer than three runs, but for the sixth straight start of his, the Astros came away losers, falling 2-1 before a Red Sox-flavored crowd of 38,035 at Minute Maid Park.

The phrase “It’s Rally Time” was posted on the fancy new scoreboard as the Astros prepared to take their turn at bat in the bottom of the ninth. Surely some Red Sox fans were confused. As per baseball tradition, the home team usually gets to bat last.

Oh, well.

One run, but five walks

Speaking of feeling right at home, Spring native Josh Beckett zipped through the Astros’ lineup, allowing just one earned run in eight innings as he posted a season-high 11 strikeouts without issuing a walk.

Lyles, who allowed only one run (unearned) in five innings, couldn’t match him. Beckett, who debuted at 21 with the Marlins in 2001, left after throwing 102 pitches. In three fewer innings, Lyles threw 101 pitches, thanks to a career-high five walks.

He had not given up more than two free passes in any of his previous starts.

“Overall, it wasn’t too bad of an outing, but I had a lot of walks,” Lyles said. “You’re not going to have a lot of success getting behind and walking a lot of guys.”

For the series, the Astros allowed 22 walks and drew just four. Fittingly, the game-winning run came courtesy of a bases-loaded walk in the ninth.

And so continues to season of discontending.

One would think Lyles (0-3), who is three months shy of his 21st birthday, might start to press. But he carries himself with a calm that indicates he isn’t anywhere near panic mode.

‘It’ll come’

“It’ll come,” Lyles said. “I’m sure I’ll get (a win) sooner or later.

“I’m not going to do any-thing different. I’m not going to try to do too much. I’ll just try to put up as many zeros as I can, and it’ll come.”

With that, he echoes the words of the Astros’ skipper.

“We have talked to him about it,” Mills said. “ ‘Hey, you don’t have to do anything different.

You don’t have to try any harder. You don’t have to try to be extra special. Just continue to be yourself, and learn as you go through. Pitch the best you can every time out and take in everything you are experiencing, both when you are pitching and not pitching. And grow and utilize those experiences, because they’re gonna help you in the future.’

“And that’s exactly what he has been doing. Good things are going to happen for him if he continues to do that. There’s no reason to think that it won’t.”